CRO Race 2024 route revealed
- by croatiaweek
- in Sport
ZAGREB, 18 Aug (Hina) – A month and a half before the start of this year’s CRO Race cycling competition, which will be held from 1 to 6 October, the route for all six stages, as well as the teams that will participate, have been announced.
This year, the CRO Race participants will cover 893 kilometers, with the route being very similar to last year’s. From the second to the fourth stage, the starting and finishing locations will be the same as last year, while the first and final stages have undergone minor changes. The only stage that will significantly differ from last year’s is the penultimate, fifth stage.
The first stage has seen slight modifications compared to last year. This year’s race will start in Vodice, and after 162.5 km, the riders will cross the finish line in Sinj. Sinj was also the finish host for the first stage last year, which started in Primošten and was about 20 kilometers longer.
The next two stages are identical to last year’s edition, with the second starting in Biograd na Moru and finishing in Novalja after 119 km, and the third starting in Otočac and finishing in Opatija (133.5 km). The host cities for the “royal” fourth stage will remain the same as last year, with the start in Krk and the finish in Labin. However, this year, the participants will cover 161 km, which is 30 km less than last year, but they will still have to conquer 3100 meters of elevation.
The biggest change in the route occurred in the fifth stage, where the start will be hosted by Ozalj, which last year was the finish location for the stage, while this year the stage will end in Karlovac after 159.5 km. The final stage will traditionally be ridden on the roads of Zagreb County and the City of Zagreb, with the 157.5 km long segment starting in Sveta Nedelja and finishing in the capital city.
A total of 19 teams will participate in the race, including six “WorldTeams” from the highest tier of world cycling. These are Bahrain-Victorious, Ineos Grenadiers, Red Bull-Bora-Hansgrohe, dsm-firmenich, Jayco AlUla, and UAE Emirates. Eight UCI Pro teams are also coming: Caja Rural-Seguros RGA, Kern Pharma, Israel-Premier Tech, Q36.5, TDT-Unibet, Tudor, Uno-X, and VF Group-Bardiani CSF-Faizane, as well as five UCI Continental teams: Adria Mobil, ATT Investments, Ljubljana Gusto Santic, Santic–Wibatech, and Felt Felbermayr.